Great Leaders Are Great Speakers: Here Are 7 Things They Do

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My wife Blake and I are professional speakers, we speak to audiences as large as several thousand people to as small as one. But whether you're a professional speaker, an employee at a company, or a senior executive...speaking is an absolutely crucial skill you need to master if you want to grow both personally and professionally. It's a big part of being a skilled communicator and can be a huge boost for your career.

Blake and I never planned to be professional speakers and when I first started out I was terrible. I wore clothes that didn't fit, I paced back and forth all the time, I spoke quickly, my message wasn't clear, I lacked confidence which was apparent in my body language, and like many, I suffered from imposter syndrome. Even when Blake and I had regular full-time jobs we wouldn't speak up in meetings and shied away from any attention.

You can hear more of our candid stories and strategies in this episode of the Be Your Own Boss (BYOB) Podcast. Click below to play or go here to listen on your favorite platform.

You’ve heard that people fear public speaking more than death. So, people who put effort into becoming better communicators and speakers will have so many more opportunities in their careers. The hardest part is often getting started and knowing how to jump in.

 Here are seven strategies you can use to become a better speaker and communicator, regardless of what you do or how senior you are. 

1. Have something to say. Sounds like common sense right? But you'd be surprised how many people talk without actually saying anything. This means having an idea of what you want your outcome to be before you start talking. It doesn't mean you will always get your desired outcome but you need to have a goal. Are you trying to convince your leader to fund something? Do you want to build a better rapport with co-workers? Are you trying to inspire a team? What is it that you are looking to do? Start with the end in mind so that when you talk...you are actually saying something! Of course, this also means that it's beneficial to speak from a stance of credibility, expertise, or experience. Not a requirement since everyone can have an opinion, but if you are looking to make change happen, then this sure helps.
2. Find your niche. Become a subject matter expert on a topic and build a community around it. This adds to your personal brand and helps people find you to speak at their events, internal meetings, lunch and learns, and the like. You can find your niche by not necessarily following your passion, but by following your talent. What do people ask you to do? Before Blake started speaking on customer experience, she was always asked for help with customer service programs because she was good at it. Blake realized she could make that her niche and become a speaker about an important topic not a lot of people were covering. What's your niche? What do you want to be known for at work or outside of work?
3. Manage expectations. Like with most things in life, you have to start on the ground floor with speaking. Don’t expect to capture everyone's attention during your first meeting or to get invited to address a large town-hall or a conference on day one. If you want to be a professional speaker then don't expect to keynote a large event and get paid tens of thousands of dollars right off the bat. I remember hearing a story about how professor Adam Grant used to receive terrible reviews from his students. This went on for a while until he created his own survey to get feedback on how he should improve. It took time but he took the feedback to heart until he became a much better speaker and presenter.
4. Find your voice. Great speakers stand out and are unique with their own brand and voice. Don’t feel like you need to look or act like every other speaker you see. When I started speaking, I gave his speeches in a full on suit (that didn't fit me), then I ditched the suit and did nice jeans a long-sleeved collared shirt and a sports jacket. Now I give talks in a nice t-shirt and jeans which match my personal brand, my casual tone, and represent my stance on challenging conventional workplace practices. What's your voice? You don't have to be a know it all. You can be someone who is vulnerable, honest, authentic. Think of the many great leaders out there and how they communicate, who do you resonate most with and why?
5. Learn the art of storytelling. People don’t care about charts and graphs. What they really connect with is stories. Learn to use stories to get your point across and back them up with data and research when needed. Collect stories from your life, things you read, history and other inspirations. If you want to make a point, convince someone to change, or inspire others, you have to make them FEEL a certain way.
6. Get outside help. Becoming an effective speaker and communicator takes work. Don’t be afraid to get outside help. Years ago, Blake attended Toastmasters, which built her confidence and gave her plenty of opportunities to practice speaking. She also worked with a coach who gave her great advice and helped craft one of Blake's most popular speeches. You can also practice your speech or presentation on family, friends and co-workers and ask for their honest feedback. Use all the outside resources you can to make yourself a better speaker. I remember when I gave my TED Academy talk in Greece in front of 1,500 people, I must have practiced it like 100 times at least!
7. Build resilience. No matter if it’s giving a keynote address or speaking up in a meeting, speaking isn’t easy. Everyone has an opinion, and you’ll likely receive criticism and negative comments. Instead of giving up and never speaking again, try to understand the context around the comments. Use criticism to improve and build resilience just like Adam Grant did. With practice, you can gain confidence that will help you endure and learn from negativity yet also embrace from and shine in the positivity.

Tsuyoshi 'Nick' Nagano is the president and CEO of Tokio Marine, a multi-national insurance holding company which is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Nick clearly articulated the importance of communication with me when I interviewed him.

 "As a CEO I may spend 70% of my time communicating with the people in my company. This may seem like a lot but when you consider that I manage a global workforce of 32,000 this can mean they only listen to me speak live or virtually for 20 minutes per year on average. Thus, these 20 minutes really need to count otherwise where is my impact as CEO?"

You won’t become a successful professional speaker overnight. But no matter if you are giving a presentation to a huge auditorium or a small group, these steps can help you find your voice and build your confidence. Improving as a speaker is a constant journey, but with practice and resilience you can become an effective communicator and change the world.

Learn more in this episode of the Be Your Own Boss (BYOB) Podcast. Click below to play or go here to listen on your favorite platform.

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